Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-02-16
DUPED BY A FRIEND.
A Saloon-Keeper, Anxious to Obtain
Riches, Falls Into Il Trap.
Froh the 81. Louis Critic.

FrOtt the 50. Louis Critic.
Charles +. Benson runs a saloon In
South st. Louis, and he has recently had
very funny experience. That is, il was
funny to outsiders, but not very funny to
Benson, tor 1t cost HIM nearly $500. The
story runs in this way:
About a month ago a man named Ed.
ward sherer visited the saloon-keeper
mentioned. Sherer and Benson were old
| friends, having been born and reared IN
| tn, same town. Therefore, Benson had
confidence in Shearer, and would swear
! BY anything he said. Sherer was
'DowN ON HIS LUCK"
! In tact, very down, and in making over
I lures to Benson, he mentioned This fact,
and quoted it as the reason why he was
willing to give up half interest in q
very big thing.
1t is a certain fact that a good many
years ago-somewhere back in the six
Cies-betore the Union Pacific road was
put through Nebraska there was stage
coach line running from Lincoln north
west to OgallaIa. This stage carried the
mail and express, and many time the
freight was very valuable. One trip it
had in the neighborho0d Of $4,000 ON
board, consigned by parties along the
line TO the Lincoln bank, and on that
trip
THE STAGE WAS HELD-UP,
and every dollar of the treasure was
stolen. Nobody IN the stage was injured,
and the driver, making the best OF bad
bargain, drove direct to Fort Kearney
and notified the commander there OF the
robbery and gave MIN a description of the
highwaymen.
A squad of cavalry was at once sent
out from the fort. They took the trail of
the robbers and followed them so closely
that an engagement ensued, There were
four OF the highwaymen, and all were
killed except one. He escaped. Now
comes in the
ST. LOUIS PART OF THE STORY.
Sherer was the robber who escaped
the soldiers bullets, and it was the story
of the robbery he told to Benson.
Sherer put it in this way to the saloon
man, and he was very business-lIke in his
talk. He said:
'Now here, old man, you know just
how l am fixed, and l have told you this
stage coach business in confidence. |
know you will never give me away. You
have probably gathered from my story
that while all OF the boys except me were
done up, that the Doodle was not recov-
cred. That's the point of the whole
thing.
BUBBLE w AS PLANIED,
and I am the only man in this country
VINO knows where 1t is. At a certain
place on the Nebraska prairies 100000
are soaked away. IfyOu want a whack
at it all YOU have to do is to put up the
cost of lifting the stuff"
Sherer told a very plausible story, and
Benson believed it all, and the narratOr's
objective point was reached. This was
that it would cost considerable money to
conduct the search for this hidden treas
ure. which had been buried for nearly
twenty-five years. Benson fell into the
trap. He advanced 5000 to Sherer to be-
gin the search, and the latter started out
on his mission.
About a week after Sherer left St.
Louis Benson received q telegram from
him saying: ''Come to Grand Island at
once"
Benson showed this dispatch to his bar
tender, put
ROLL OF BILLS IN HIS POCKET,
and started out with visions of untold
wealth in his brain.
Two days after his departure tile bar
tender received a telegram, dated Hast
ings, Neb.. saying:
"Send me 5000 by express to this
place."
The bartender had the money in the
shop, and he sent it along.
About week atterward Mr.. Benson re-
turned to St. Louis.
HE WAS MAD.
In fact, lie was angry. The air
surrounding him was sulphurous. But
when he learned that his bartender had
sent 5000 to Hastings he made the atmos-
phere within a radius OF seven blocks
smell of birthstone. He had never been
near Hastings. He had not seen Sherer.
He had found no hidden treasure, and he
had arrived at the conclusion that the
whole story was very large fake,
In fact, Mr.. Benson has experience, and
IL has cost him in the neighborhood OF
$500. And the experience is all he has.